Wednesday, February 5, 2014

The waiting game...and spilt milk

I have a shameful admission to make (again, I believe): I am extremely impatient.

So much so that taking apart one of our stove top burners and cleaning up bubbled over milk is a near-daily occurrence (as is the inevitable burning of my hand, since I won't wait until it's cooled. See: impatient, above).

Most mornings I make tea, but I don't use the microwave to heat my water and milk and I like to steep loose leaves while the liquid is continuously heated (rather than heating/steaming and then steeping, off heat). Which, if you use milk, you'll know can lead to an especially thrilling build up of boiling liquids that tend to splash over, bringing semi-burned tea leaves along with it.

I generally drink spiced Indian tea. Chai. The stronger the better, so a good 10-minute steep is required. But rather than stand and watch the tea gurgle about for that long, I tend to go do other things, noting to myself that I need to come back in 2-3 minutes to monitor the situation.

Of course I never do.

Then I hear the tell-tale hiss of the pot boiling over and I start cursing as I slip and slide in my fuzzy slippers back to the kitchen to try and alleviate the mess.

This happens nearly every day.

What's that definition of insanity?Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.

5 comments
:

haha this just made me smiled because clearly I am not the only one who is slightly insane. How do you prepare you chai? Just curious..I have been trying to cut down on refined sugar and looking for a natural substitute for it.

I suppose a proper Indian wouldn't consider what I make "chai" since I don't use any sugar! :). If I'm making just one serving for myself, I'll fill a mug with half water and half full-fat milk (from local farm here that only has grass-fed cows). The creaminess of the milk provides all the sweetness I need (but it did take some getting used to a few years ago!).

Anyway: I pour the liquid into a small pot, scoop in a tablespoon or so (usually a very big, rounded tablespoon) of spiced tea from Numi (their golden chai loose leaf tea is amazing), bring it all to just under a boil (or at least I try to—takes about 5 minutes), and then let it simmer for another 5 minutes. Strain it into a mug with a little pat of grass-fed butter and a scoop of coconut oil, then blend it so it gets emulsified and even more creamy.

Said lately

Scribbles from a New Yorker recently arrived in Stockholm by way of Sicily. Consummate urbanite feathering my nest, seeking cozy country comforts in the city, and learning how to be an American abroad.